The present invention relates to an optical magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus and more particularly to an optical magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus and method suitable to efficient recording and reproducing signals on a recording medium having a lengthwise direction such as magnetic tape.
In the past, an optical magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus is described in a paper entitled "Optical Magnetic Recording Technique" by Imamura, Journal of Institute of Television Engineers of Japan, Vol. 39, No. 4, for example.
In the prior art method, however, a recording track is formed in the traveling direction of the recording medium. It has been aimed to prolong the recording time. When magnetic tape is used, for example, the recording track is formed in the lengthwise direction of the magnetic tape. Manipulation such as special reproduction or record head search used for reproduction becomes very difficult.